On my final day of New York Fashion Week Fall 2011, I wasn’t completely bagless: there were plenty under my eyes. I was exhausted (by copious fashion shows), beaten down (by platforms), and bruised, (literally, from trying to walk through the subway turnstile when my card hadn’t registered). I was tired of being cold, so I threw on just about everything left in my suitcase: T by Alexander Wang T-shirt dress, Richard Chai blazer (thank you Shadin!) Weston Wear fur vest, Alice and Olivia leggings, Jeffrey Campbell 99 shoes, American Apparel cape over the whole shebang. I had lots of pockets in my jacket and cape. And I had just one show to attend, then I was off to visit our friend Dylan Ratigan at MSNBC, then to the airport. So while I was bagless for the first part of the day, I was reunited with all of my luggage, which we had stored at my husband’s office in Celsea, later in the day. It was liberating to have access to all of my stuff: computer, iPhone, chargers, press materials, magazines, make-up, a change of shoes, an extra sweater, all in one place. There is comfort in having all your crap with you, but there’s discomfort and a dearth of chicness in carrying it on your person. This experiment has made it clear that best of both worlds is to have the luxury of someone else keeping track of your things, a la a Paris Vogue editor-in-chief Emmanuelle Alt, the inspiration for this experiment. I’m imagining an assistant to keep track or your invitations and other paperwork and a car in which to stow your computer, a change of shoes, a coat and perhaps a make-up kit. Until that luxury is mine, I believe I’ll have to find a solution to chicness other than going bagless. I’m on board with Alt’s predecessor Carine Roitfeld’s comment in New York Magazine about handbags: “I do not like handbags. I do not wear handbags It is not a nice look.” But a girl without a Sherpa has to put her stuff someplace, otherwise things get lost and broken.
While perusing Jezebel recently, I found a laptop case from Topshop that I think might be a good choice for next fashion week. It’s clean, simple, functional, inexpensive, will fit my Macbook air and maybe a couple magazines, and I love the look. What do you think?
Tagged as:
bagless blogger,
Emmanuelle Alt,
New York fashion week
